Najib steps in to salvage Ku Nan’s soup kitchen mess
(The Malaysian Insider) – Datuk Seri Najib Razak (pic) today took to Twitter to express the government’s concern over the homeless and the poor, in an attempt at damage control following the public outcry over the ban on soup kitchens in Kuala Lumpur.
“The govt is very concerned abt the plight of the homeless and poor. Appreciate the role played by volunteers such as Soup Kitchen (sic),” the prime minister wrote on twitter.
“.@TengkuAdnanReal will be discussing with Soup Kitchen to find a mutual acceptable solution for all parties,” he added, referring to Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor.
Tengku Adnan has come under fire since announcing Thursday that soup kitchens in Kuala Lumpur have until Monday to relocate out of the city centre if they do not want to be fined by City Hall.
“The image of my city is very bad. If I don’t do this sort of thing, society won’t be disciplined,” the Umno secretary-general told a news conference.
On Tuesday, Tengku Adnan had also announced that beggars and those who donated to them may also be fined, to reduce the begging culture which could tarnish the country’s image.
His announcement was met with fury and severe criticism from Malaysians, many of whom took to social media to denounce him as “Ku Nan the barbarian”.
Tengku Adnan’s ban was seen as particularly inappropriate in light of the month of Ramadan, where Muslims are encouraged to give alms to the poor and empathise with the less fortunate.
Najib’s tweets today did little to stem public fury, as netizens responded with scepticism and further questions.
